Birds of Venezuela


Perija Metaltail (Metallura iracunda) Male Endangered Colombia
Photograph by Andres Cuervo Copyright and usage info This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 License. In short: you are free to share and make derivative works of the file under the conditions that you appropriately attribute it, and that you distribute it only under a license identical to this one.


Perija Metaltail (Metallura iracunda) Female Endangered Perijá Mountains, Cesar, Colombia
Photograph by Tom Friedel © All Rights Reserved.

Slightly larger than the Tyrian Metaltail also found in Perija, and usually found over 3000m in the paramo. Note dark colors on male.


Tyrian Metaltail (Metallura tyrianthina districta) Male ProAves El Dorado Reserve, Santa Marta Sierra Nevada, Magdalena, Colombia Blue-tailed Santa Marta and Perija race.
Photograph by Tom Friedel © All Rights Reserved.


Tyrian Metaltail (Metallura tyrianthina quitensis) Male Guango Lodge, Ecuador Note red back of tail distinctive for this species.
Photograph by Tom Friedel © All Rights Reserved.


Tyrian Metaltail (Metallura tyrianthina tyrianthina) Female Manizales, Colombia
Photograph by Tom Friedel © All Rights Reserved.

A small hummingbird with a short bill. The Tyrian Metaltail has a coppery-red tail except the districta subspecies in Santa Marta (Colombia) and Perija (Colombia, Venezuela), which has a blue tail.
An odd female from Perija. The female of subspecies districta is not supposed to spotted.
Alt. photo